As in many aspects of life, ignoring a problem such as drink driving doesn't make it go away. That applies whether you're willingly letting an intoxicated friend drive, you've had a few beers yourself and think you'll be fine anyway, or whether you're using an app to deliberately avoid DUI checkpoints.

Thankfully, technology will be here to help keep people on the straight and narrow in the near future.

Rather than letting you risk your life and licence out on the roads, a system called TruTouch can detect your blood alcohol level before you've even started your car, says Consumer Reports.

The system measures blood alcohol using an infrared light in a car's starter button. As you go to press it results can be determined in only a few seconds. Over the limit? You ain't going anywhere.

Don't think you could get around it by letting a sober friend prod the starter either - a built-in biometric scanner means the system can't be fooled by someone else.

The technology has obviously created some interest, as the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and the Automotive Coalition for Traffic Safety (ACTS) have collectively invested $2.25 million in TruTouch Technologies to develop it for widespread use.

This means more than just fitting ignition interlock devices to the cars of past DUI offenders - its hoped the tech will eventually be rolled out to every vehicle within the next decade.